compliance regulations.
Research shows that proper nurse staffing helps in the accomplishment of clinical and economic enhancements on patient care as well as boosting patient satisfaction and health-related quality of life. This translates to a reduction in errors on nursing and medication, decrease in the mortality rate of patients, reduced patient readmissions and decreased duration of stay. Also, a proper nurse staffing ratio reduces the costs associated with patient care by avoiding unplanned patient readmissions. It promotes nursing safety, retention of nurses, increase job satisfaction and thus avoid nurse fatigue. This ultimately contributes to better patient care (Braithwaite, Matsuyama, Mannion, & Johnson, 2015).
Both proponents and critics concur that proper nurse staffing directly relates to enhanced patient outcomes. Heightened emphasis on value-based care as well as ideal nurse staffing is necessary in providing high-quality and cost-effective nursing care. The execution of a legislative approach will assist in setting the fundamental staffing standards, and promote transparency of nursing activities via reporting to the public and imposing fines on nursing institutions that fail to meet the stated compliance regulations.
References
American Nurses Credentialing Center, (2017). 2019 Magnet Application Manual. Silver Spring, Md. American Nurses Credentialing Center.
Braithwaite, J., Matsuyama, Y., Mannion, R., & Johnson, J. K. (2015). Healthcare reform, quality and safety: Perspectives, participants, partnerships, and prospects in 30 countries. Burlington, VT: Ashgate
Rafferty, A. M., Busse, R., Zander-Jentsch, B., Sermeus, W., Bruyneel, L., European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies & World Health Organization. (2019). Strengthening health systems through nursing: Evidence from 14 European countries. Copenhagen, Denmark: WHO Regional Office for Europe.
